Saudi oil production cut by 50 percent after attacks: Energy minister (WATCH)

The latest attacks on Saudi Aramco oil facilities resulted in the halt of an estimated 5.7 million barrels of crude oil supplies, or about 50 percent of Saudi Aramco’s production, Saudi Arabia’s Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said on Saturday.

The loss due to the temporary shutdown in the Eastern Province, however, would be offset through inventories, the energy minister said in a statement carried by the Saudi Press Agency.

The attacks also caused a halt in associated gas production of about two billion cubic feet per day, he added.

The minister said the attacks, however, did not have any impact on the supply of electricity and water supplies from the fuel, or on the supply of the domestic market of hydrocarbons.

In August, Saudi Arabia produced 9.85 million barrels of oil per day, according to official figures from the US Energy Information Administration.

Aramco CEO Amin Nasser said that the company is currently working on recovering the quantities of production lost due to the temporary shutdowns following the attack. He added that a progress update would be provided in the next 48 hours.

Following the attack on Saudi Aramco’s facilities, the International Energy Agency said earlier on Saturday that oil markets are “well supplied with ample commercial stock.”

“Previous attacks were not viewed as serious by the market but it is hard to ignore today’s attack on such key infrastructure at Abqaiq,” Joe McMonigle, a senior energy analyst at US-based Hedgeye Risk Management, told Al Arabiya English.

“Oil fundamentals point to an already tight market,” he added. “But, current oil markets have been operating like the market was oversupplied and demand is slowing.”

Today’s attack on the Kingdom’s key oil infrastructure is seen as important to global supply, and will test oversupply theory, McMonigle added.

The attack did not result in any injuries or deaths, Prince Abdulaziz confirmed.

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